Captain Scott house
Civil War Supper, auction set for Saturday

Thursday, March 8, 2007


Independent Staff Writer

Captain Scott House


The Friends of Captain Scott Committee will host a Civil War Supper and live auction beginning at 4 p.m. on Saturday, March 10, at Alexandria Elementary School.

Proceeds will benefit the effort to raise funds to save the Captain Scott House.

Beans, breads and applesauce will be served starting at 4 p.m. and donated items will be auctioned starting at 6 p.m. The event is expected to conclude about 8 p.m..

The committee was formed in October to save the long-time St. Albans Township landmark that currently sits alone at the corner of state Routes 161 and 37. If the $80,000 needed to move the house cannot be raised in the next month -- half of it within the next two weeks -- it will be demolished to make way for the new 161/37 highway interchange.

"I do think we have the resources in the community to make that happen," said Donna M. Herring, a member of both the committee and Alexandria Community Council. "We'll see if the community wants to make it happen."

She said the group hopes to have some Civil War reenactors at Saturday's supper.

As of last week, items pledged for the auction included a basket of goodies from the Greater Buckeye Lake Historical Society, furniture and cookbooks. Donations of all kinds of auction items are needed, Herring said, from music lessons to weekend getaway packages.

"We've asked different area businesses to donate things like gift certificates, products and services such as hair cuts and pizzas," Herring said. "There will be things you use all the time as well as unusual objects that would be hard to find."

In addition to auction items, direct cash donations will also support the relocation of the house. The committee is accepting pledge letters, as well.

"A pledge letter might say something like 'I'll donate X dollars in April if you are able to save the house,'" Herring said. "We could use those letters as evidence of community support to help in requesting matching dollars from foundations and larger benefactors."

She said the committee has received many $25 donations, demonstrating support for the effort, but the group needs larger donations to achieve its ultimate goal.

About $27,000 in services and materials have been committed for work at the new site for the house that has been offered by Brookside Materials/Kurtz Brothers of Columbus. The business has offered property at a former dairy on the west edge of the village of Alexandria.

In-kind donations include excavation, landscaping, architectural services, photography, financial services, grant writing, and Web site services.

The relocated home would be used as a museum and community center after its restoration.

The Captain Joseph M. Scott House was built shortly after the Civil War in the Italianate style of the time. Scott was known as an outspoken abolitionist and prominent local farmer and historian.

The Ohio Department of Transportation has given the house to the village if the structure is contracted to be moved by March 16.

"We have a lot of ground to cover in an extremely short time," Herring said. "But the community has been responsive and I hope we can get all the resources in place soon enough."

Tax-deductible donations can be sent to the Alexandria Community Council, Friends of Captain Scott Committee, P.O. Box 234, Alexandria 43001.



February 9, 2010 | Currently:  23° Light Snow